Recipe Help needed - Adapt pastry recipe w/out cream cheese

[kittypops]

I have this pastry recipe for turnovers that works great. Unfortunately I need to prepare it for a party where some individuals cannot eat cheese. What can I substitute? Or does anyone have an alternate tried-n-true pastry recipe? I use it to make herbed mushroom turnovers.

PASTRY:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (6 ounces) block-style light or fat-free cream cheese
6 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons ice water

To prepare pastry, lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, cream cheese, butter, and 1 teaspoon salt in a food processor; pulse 4 times or until mixture resembles coarse meal. With processor on, add ice water through food chute, processing until dough forms a ball. Gently press mixture into a 4-inch circle on plastic wrap. Cover and chill 15 minutes.

thanks a million

[alwayscooking]

Could you please be more specific about the reasons your guest is unable to eat cheese - dairy? rennet? fat? salt? Although I'm not sure cream cheese is really cheese . . .

[kittypops]

soft cheeses I think are a problem for one person. It is primarily a dairy issue because I know she does not drink milk or eat a lot of cheese (although I think butter is fine).

[pitu]

I'm not a technical baker, but one of my grandmother's very old pastry/cookie recipes that's similar to yours calls for lard. The substitution written on the recipe card is a combination of cream cheese and margarine, I kid you not.
I've made them with butter as a sub for the lard - the lard version calls for no cottage or cream cheese.

Perhaps someone else here has the know-how to help you reverse engineer your recipe with lard, if that fits the constraints. Or...theoretically, you could use one of those vegan vegetable shortenings. But at that point, you're probably better off consulting a vegan pastry recipe.

[alwayscooking]

Your guest may be lactose intolerant - so butter would be bad. You might want to try a pate a choux made with lard instead of your recipe (although I've not done it) or try something entirely different.

[kittypops]

I asked. She said butter ok. cream cheese not ok. I am wondering if good old crisco might be a good option? I may try that out. As much as I like the idea of lard, I think there may be a vegetarian or two at the party.